In modern English, a casino is a facility which houses and accommodates certain types

of gambling activities. The industry that deals in casinos is called the gaming industry. Casinos
are most commonly built near or combined with hotels, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships
or other tourist attractions. There is much debate over whether or not the social and economic
consequences of casino gambling outweigh the initial revenue that may be generated. [1] In the
United States, some states that have high unemployment and budget deficits have turned to
legalizing casinos, often in places that are not tourist destinations. Some casinos are also known
for hosting live entertainment events, such as stand-up comedy, concerts, and sporting events.

The term "casino" is a confusing linguistic false friend for translators.

Casino is of Italian origin; the root casa (house) originally meant a small
country villa, summerhouse, or social club.[2] During the 19th century, the term casino came to
include other public buildings where pleasurable activities took place; such edifices were usually
built on the grounds of a larger Italian villa or palazzo, and were used to host civic town functions,
including dancing, gambling, music listening, and sports; examples in Italy include Villa
Farnese and Villa Giulia, and in the US the Newport Casino in Newport, Rhode Island. In modernday Italian, the term casino designates a bordello (also called casa chiusa, literally "closed
house"), while the gambling house is spelled casin with an accent.[3]
Not all casinos were used for gaming. The Catalina Casino,[4] a famous landmark overlooking
Avalon Harbor on Santa Catalina Island, California, has never been used for traditional games of
chance, which were already outlawed in California by the time it was built. The Copenhagen
Casino was a theatre, known for the mass public meetings often held in its hall during the 1848
Revolution, which made Denmark a constitutional monarchy. Until 1937, it was a well-known
Danish theatre.[5] The Hanko Casino in Hanko, Finlandone of that town's most conspicuous
landmarkswas never used for gambling. Rather, it was a banquet hall for the Russian
nobility which frequented this spa resort in the late 19th century and is now used as a restaurant.
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